ABSTRACT
This chapter explores the particular theoretical trajectory that critical accounting research has taken to understand the political and cultural peculiarities of management accounting practices in LDCs, and potential paths for future investigation. It presents the theoretical underpinnings of early management accounting studies, which were prescriptive in nature and firmly rooted in the normative/functionalist paradigm. The chapter presents the conceptual framework used to capture the critical theorisation project of management accounting studies in LDCs, noting major themes. The normative intention of such development initiatives has often been identified as the construction of a more democratic, participative, social form of accountability structure to facilitate an inclusive and participatory mode of development. In recent times, LDCs have imported new management accounting ideas as a result of colonial legacies, compounded by neo-colonial relations. Inspired by post-Foucauldian readings, the researchers examines how neoliberalism is shaping and reshaping the lives of the poor in LDC societies.
